The United Nations (UN) has praised Kenyans for the peaceful election and smooth transition of power that demonstrated a mature democracy.
The UN Resident Coordinator in Kenya Dr. Stephen Jackson described the elections as a ‘Kenyan miracle’ saying they were extraordinary and were envied by many nations in the world.
He spoke at the Maasai Mara University during the commemoration of International Day of Democracy 2022 with the theme ‘The Importance of Media Freedom to Democracy, Peace, and Delivering on the Sustainable Development Goals.’
The forum was organized by Universities and Colleges Students Peace Association of Kenya (UCSPAK) and brought together students from 15 universities in the Rift Valley region.
Dr. Jackson observed that democracy around the world is fragile and under threat but commended the way Kenyans had shown maturity in democracy.
He reiterated that the UN does not take it for granted that over 14 million people participated in voting for their favourite candidates and exercised calm during the tallying process until the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) announced the results.
“We are standing here only two days after immediate former President Uhuru Kenyatta smoothly handed over power to President Dr. William Ruto. This is commendable and the UN is so proud of Kenya,” he said, adding that he had received many congratulatory messages from organizations and individuals around the world.
The UN Resident Coordinator in Kenya reiterated that he watched the whole election process and was personally contented that the elections were free, fair, transparent and credible.
Maasai Mara University dean of students Mohamed Abdullahi said over 15 universities from various counties in the Rift Valley region had gathered to dialogue on strengthening peace in the country.
UCSPAK Executive Director Allan Chacha, said the umbrella brings together all the 75 universities in the country adding that the regional student peace forum was the third to be held.
“We started in Nyanza region where we held a student peace forum at the Kisii University. The second forum was held in the Nairobi region at Technical University of Kenya. We intend to move to the Central and Eastern regions after this,” said Chacha.
Kelvin Mbithi, the Chairperson of Maasai Mara University Student Association said the students are glad to speak about peace as the youths are the ones used to cause chaos.
He lauded Kenyans for maintaining peace before, during and after the elections saying this was a mature way to build the nation.
By Ann Salaton
